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If you build a ship, don't drum up people to collect wood, and don't assign them tasks and work, but rather teach them to long for the endless immensity of the sea.

Antoine deSaint-Exupery

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Leadership Training

An effective leader is more successful because he or she leads with passion and compassion, inspiring others, rather than directing them. This empowers employees to give their best creative force, motivation, and energy to the project, aligning the strengths and contributions of all team members to the vision of the business.

Every individual within the project has their own beliefs and motivations. The group as a whole has a culture, group beliefs, and overall motivating factors. The sum of all these beliefs affects the success of the project, especially when there is conflict among the beliefs. When the beliefs or motivation of the leadership differs from that of the group, the project will likely fail. Underlying conflicting driving forces could significantly reduce the effectiveness of the team.

The project's driving force must be consistent and positive from its origins in the team leader. The project leader or manager has the most important role in aligning the beliefs of the vision statement, motivating team members and setting the culture of the project group. They must unite the entire team to ensure success. Before the leader can accomplish this goal they must be aligned within themselves.

The three personal goals a leader will have to achieve before they can unite the team:

1. First embody the passion and clarity of the project vision before passing it along to the group.

2. Fully understand the requirements of the project or product under development and how the team will meet those requirements. (know the capabilities of your team)

3. Have a clear vision of the end result or product. Know how to troubleshoot and problem solve effectively. Enlist team members to help find solutions.

When all three prerequisites have been internalized by the project leader, they can begin to gather the support for the project and integrate these beliefs with the team. Once the team is aligned, the next requirement is for the leader to integrate the steps with management and the customer. This coordination must originate from the leader's passion and compassion. When leaders possess these qualities they are able to overcome obstacles and transform limitations into optimum results. In this way everyone involved becomes a conscious creator of the product.